Round of Azerbaijani-Russian consultations on Caspian Sea held in Moscow

A round of Azerbaijani-Russian consultations on the Caspian Sea is being held in Moscow on May 19-20, the Azerbaijani foreign ministry reported on May 19.

The negotiation is led by Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Khalaf Khalafov, special presidential envoy for the delimitation and demarcation of state borders, and head of the Russian delegation to the multilateral talks on the Caspian Sea, Igor Bratchikov.

The coastal states (Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan and Iran) signed a Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea in November 2003.

In July 1998, Russia and Kazakhstan signed an agreement on the delimitation of the northern part of the Caspian Sea in order to exercise sovereign rights for subsoil use.

In May 2002 they signed a protocol to this agreement. On Nov. 29, 2001 and Feb. 27, 2003, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan signed agreements on the delimitation of the Caspian Sea.

Additionally, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Russia signed an agreement on the delimitation of adjacent sections of the Caspian Sea on May 14, 2003.